


Leakage

by Mister_Spock



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-01
Updated: 2017-06-01
Packaged: 2018-11-07 19:34:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11065680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mister_Spock/pseuds/Mister_Spock
Summary: Spock did everything he could to bring back Khan so that McCoy could save Jim Kirk's life.But he's left with another type of fight as his injuries are more severe than he realises.*Complete*





	Leakage

**Author's Note:**

> This is another version of a fic I already wrote about this. I just decided that as I had the majority written I might as well finish it off and post it.

Spock looked over the PADD and the various reports, files and comms he needed to deal with. The sheer number was overwhelming. With the Captain still in a precariously dangerous condition in Sick Bay awaiting transport to a Starfleet facility, Spock had inherited Kirk's duties. 

As First Officer and Science Officer, he found his level of duties to be fulfilling to him. A human would struggle with the work load, but he was able to complete tasks quicker than most humans.  
But right now, he felt the burdened on his human half affecting every thing he tried to do. 

He was delegating more tasks out to others- who were already burdened themselves. He was pushing on some of the Captain's work to Sulu.  
He did want Captaincy, Spock would remind himself whenever he felt like a failure for not coping with the workload himself, and this would help him. 

105 crew members were dead or injured, Spock was still working through and processing the deceased and contacting their families, while he worked with the department heads to source replacements for the injured or deceased crew.  
Starfleet were pushing him for more details on what had happened, on Marcus, on Khan, the torpedo's. The ship itself needed numerous work to repair the damage and he didn't even want to contemplate the mess that Khan had caused when the Ship crashed. 

Yes, being half human was definitely causing Spock to struggle with the tasks expected of him- tasks that he'd be able to complete if he were a full Vulcan, no doubt. 

He cast the thoughts from his mind and started to look and see what his next task should be. 

~

When he returned to his quarters, much later, Uhura was waiting for him.

The ship was docking soon and they'd all be back on Earth. He hadn't seen her since they beamed back on board with a barely conscious Khan and he'd left security to take him to sickbay while he went back to the bridge.  
In his quarters, she helped strip him, remarking on the bruises on his back and stomach, all from the beating he received from Khan. Her fingers gently traced the bruises but he pushed her hands away.  
He needed to change, he had too much to do. 

She tried to tell him to rest but he dismissed it. Instead he asked her to keep up on Jim's condition for him. He couldn't even spare the time to check on him. 

~

They'd been on Earth 4 days and Spock's duties still seemed to be piling up. Uhura sent comms about Kirk and he said he'd go and see him. He meant it, even if he never managed to do it He didn't expect McCoy to turn up out of the blue. “If you can't come to me, I'll come to you,” he said through the comm line. Spock allowed the Doctor in only to have the Doctor mutter a curse as soon as he saw the Vulcan. “What the hell have you been doing?”

“Explain?”

“Have you had any sleep?” 

“I have rested,” Spock replied. 

“That sounds like a Vulcan no. You look exhausted. I've never seen a Vulcan with eye bags from tiredness before.”

It was concern, he knew that. Yet it hit Spock like an accusation. That he wasn't doing good enough, he wasn't coping, he couldn't cope. “Doctor, I have much work to do. Did you come for a reason?”

“I came to check up on you. You haven't been to see Jim. I thought you would have done.”

“My concern for the Captain is great, yet with his situation and the Admiral Marcus and Khan's situations, reports still need to be filed. And I have to undertake that duty. Unfortunately, the severity of the incident means it take precedents over everything else. Including the Captain. Lt. Uhura has been keeping me up to date on his condition, however.”

McCoy sighed. “Have you even had any sleep?”

“I have rested sufficiently.” 

“Bullshit. If you had, you'd look a hell of a lot better than you do.” McCoy frowned at Spock. “I have a supplement, if you want it. Might give you boost to get through some of this workload you inherited.” 

Spock had every intention of saying no. He could operate on less sleep than a human so really, this should not cause any hardship to him. Yet he found he wanted to accept the offer for help. The idea of being able to perform better than he had been would be a huge benefit. But he didn't seem to be able to make himself say anything.  
McCoy seemed to understand the struggle. “How about I leave this here, in case you change your mind,” he said. Spock still said nothing. “Look, I know you have a hell of a lot of pressure on you right now, but just... do what's the most important and take a break, okay?”

“Thank you, Doctor.” Spock nodded and McCoy left Spock to his own devices. 

~

Some time later, Spock had taken the supplement and was working though yet another report than needed completing. 

His mind was on Vulcan, his own home world. He was thinking of the heat, the landscape, the air. His home. He missed it. More than he thought was right for a Vulcan to do. Or even a half Vulcan.  
It was only a planet. He should mourn his people, but a rock was a rock. They had a new home world.  
It was dry and arid. It was hotter than humans found acceptable. Yet, it didn't feel the same.  
He didn't want it to be the same.  
He became so immersed in his thoughts he lost track of where he was. He could feel Vulcan's sun's on his skin, could taste the salty desert air, could hear his Mother call for him.  
His comm beeped breaking him from the thoughts. He checked his messages and saw it was a reminder that his report was due in an hour. 

He pushed aside the thoughts of Vulcan, but he could still taste it. 

~

Spock woke to the sound of pounding on the door. 

He got out of bed and pulled on a robe, heading to the door. He looked at the viewer to see it was just Doctor McCoy and he opened the door, tiredly. 

“Doctor, if you advise sleep...” he started but stopped as McCoy's face drained of colour as he looked at Spock. “Is it Jim?” he asked, the first thought that came to his mind.

McCoy ignored him and pushed him inside, closing the door. He pulled out his medical scanner and held it by Spock's head. 

Spock avoided the instrument. “Doctor, what do you think you're doing?”

“Have you seen yourself, Spock?” 

“I was asleep when you knocked on my door,” Spock informed him. 

“Skull fracture? You have a Goddamn skull fracture, Spock!”

Spock didn't say anything, about to disagree with McCoy's diagnosis until he truly considered the only time he would have acquired it. He recalled the force applied by Khan as he tried to kill Spock. If Uhura hadn't beamed down when she did, he was quite certain that he would have become Khan's second victim. “I did not consider the consequences of the fight with Khan fully,” he finally confesses. 

McCoy sighs but says nothing, running the scanner across Spock in a body wide scan. Beside from heavy bruising on his back, there's no other injury worth noting, but the brainwaves are also erratic enough to cause concern.  
“What's goin' on in your head? You've never read like this before?”

Spock owes McCoy the truth, he decides. “I attempted a meld.” 

“What the hell would you do that for?”

Spock lets out a tiny sigh of frustration. “”My decision to go after Khan was not logical, it was an emotional response-” McCoy reacted to that and Spock did his best to ignore it, staring hard at the side of his desk. “Being an augment, Khan's strength is greater than mine. I should have took that into account when I went to confront him.”

McCoy's voice softened from the harsh accusation from earlier. “Well, nobody's perfect.” McCoy tapped in for a treatment for Spock. “So the meld thing, will it sort itself out? I mean, I can treat any physical injuries but do you need me to get a Vulcan specialist or something?”

“No, Doctor. No harm has been done. The reading's shall right themselves soon enough.”

“You've done melds before and not gone so out of whack, right? What's different?”

“I was not in the correct frame of mind to correctly perform a meld. I could have caused serious damage. In fact, it is considered a gross violation to do such a thing.”

“Yeah? Well I consider a gross violation trying to kill a ship full of people. Sometimes you have to take a step beyond what you're comfortable with. For the greater good.” 

“If I am unable to right any damage caused by the meld, I would have to go to a healer and explain my actions. They would not to into account the reasoning behind such a violation.”

“You said it would be fine.” McCoy stated. 

“Most likely, yes. But I have never melded with a mind like Khan's. There are unknown factors. I believe that I should have no problems.” 

“Okay, well let me stick to what I can heal. Did you have any bleeding at all?” 

“No.” 

“Well, you look like you've got two black eyes right now. Heavy bruising around the eyes is a symptom. And-” McCoy tilted Spock's head forward and to one side a little and found more bruising behind the ears, “-there's another. Bruising behind the ears. And some swelling as well. Are you in pain?” 

Spock considered this carefully. “I have had a headache for some time. I have been repressing the pain.”

“Well considering your injury it's not just a random headache, or from stress.” 

“Vulcans do not suffer with stress.”

“Don't.” McCoy warned sternly. His eye caught a box of tissues beside Spock's bed and then the edge of something tucked almost out of sight, under the fall of the duvet covering Spock's bed. He kicked it out from under the bed and saw it was a waste paper basket, more or less filled with tissues. Some had a smattering of green bloodstains on. “The hell, Spock? You said you hadn't been bleeding.” McCoy said, picking one of the tissues from the bin. 

Spock looked at it, eyes narrowed as though he;d never seen the offending item before. “I- That is not mine,” he said, indignantly. 

“Someone planted this in here, huh?” McCoy challenged, more interested in the tissue right then. Clearly, he could learn more about Spock's condition through this than talking to Spock currently. 

“I did not ask you in here, Doctor.” Spock replied, snappishly. 

McCoy ignored him as the diagnosis on the tissue was complete. Beside the obvious blood stains the tissue also had cerebralspinal fluid. He had suspected a depressed fracture, but this was bad, considering the amount of tissues that were soiled with the leaking fluid. It meant surgery when he already had sickbay working to save Jim's life.  
Too bad. They were going to have to have a tough day.  
This was too severe to wait any longer, not when Spock had already been delaying treatment. 

He called for a medical unit to come to Spock's quarters. 

By the time he was escorting the anti-grav unit carrying Spock into Sickbay, the Vulcan was mostly unconscious. But as they passed by the bed where Jim was lying, Spock opened his eyes. “Jim,” he said softly. 

“We're doing what we can,” McCoy said. 

“Promise me that if I do no make it, you will not let Jim know how I came to be injured.”

“Shut up, you're going to make it, okay?”

“Just in case, Doctor.”

“Fine, I'll tell him I murdered you for illogical behaviour. Better?” 

“Much.” Spock said, eyes closing, sleepily. “And do not alert Lieutenant Uhura of my condition until after the operation. She will only fret.” 

“Look, just concentrate on healing that messed up head of yours, okay? Let me worry about everything else.”

“My mind is damaged more than I can heal, Doctor.”

“What? You said-”

“Not from Khan. From my planet. I can not make it right.” 

“Just do your best. A little bit every day. You're doing fine.” 

He pressed the hypospray flush against Spock's neck before administering it and Spock quickly lost his fight with consciousness. McCoy relaxed slightly, not having to dread the next words Spock was going to say.  
Once he's fixed Spock's skull, he'd talk to Uhura in private, find out her opinions about Spock's mental state and whether a healer was required. He might not like it, given what he'd told McCoy about the meld, but if he was having a hard time with what happened on Vulcan still then something needed to be done. 

He hated to admit it- even to himself- but he'd seen something very human from Spock today.  
Maybe he wasn't such a lost cause after all.


End file.
